Lacey // (The 1975 / Matty Healy fanfiction)

// C H A P T E R S I X T E E N //

Lacey paced around the hotel room that had been supposed to be hers last night with clothes strewn all around her. She hadn't been surprised when she saw what Ella had packed for her: skimpy clothes that were probably meant to be to Matty's liking, not her own. What had surprised her though, was that she had not been able to find even one pair of jeans in her belongings. At first she hadn't thought much about it, having the idea that she might as well just wear the same pants she wore the day before. But as soon as she picked those up it seemed as if the beach had decided to live in them, sand pouring out of them and all over the hotel room's carpet, which not only meant one less choice on the 'what-to-wear' list but also that the cleaning lady seemed to be getting an extra tip the next day. Sorting through the rest of her clothes, she was greeted by a sparkly body fitting dress with long sleeves, a black skater dress which showed a bit too much of her cleavage and finally, a skirt with a cropped shirt, which allowed a glimpse of her stomach. Not happy with either of the choices, she finally decided to grab the skirt and the top. She knew it wasn't an ideal outfit, - especially for a night she really did not want to dress up for - but it at least gave her a bit more freedom of movement than the tight fitting dresses.

Stripping out of Matty's shirt, which she had put back on after having it dry during her incredibly long and relaxing hot shower, she thought of what might lay ahead of her. She didn't know what to expect. There had been no indication of what they might be doing together, if they were even going to do something extravagant together. For all she knew, they might be staying in his hotel room drinking cheap red wine out of the minibar while talking about everything and nothing. She didn't even know what she herself wanted to happen that night. The only thing that she was incredibly certain of was that she wanted things to go well, that she simply couldn't take another fight - especially not with everything between them at stake.

She quickly slipped on her shirt when she heard a knock at her door and gave herself one last look in the mirror. Her hair was wavy from letting it air-dry after her shower and she had kept her make-up simple: a thin stroke of eyeliner with a bit of brown eye shadow around it and mascara to top it off. The only thing that really stood out about her was her outfit, but that hadn't exactly been in her hands from the start. She quickly fluffed up her hair one last time, before she went to the door and opened it.

Matty stood at the other side of it, clearly gawking at her appearance. She felt that familiar rush of embarrassment creep up on her and she quickly covered up her exposed stomach with her arms, suddenly conscious about all the monthly sit-ups she had planned on doing, but had never actually done.

Her gesture seemed to get him out of his thoughts and he shook his head as he regained his composure, "God, Lace." He muttered before he gently placed his hands on hers to guide them away from her stomach and back to her sides, "You look incredible."

She felt her cheeks turn even redder and she cursed herself for it. After all, this guy had already seen her naked, she should be well over the insecure phase by now, but somehow knowing that this might very well be the last time the black-clad guy in front of her might pick her up seemed to change it all.

He smirked a bit at her shyness and leaned in to whisper softly into her ear, "Don't be shy with me, Lace. Not tonight."

"I know, I'm sorry." She apologized before sharing her thoughts with him, "It's just that I know that this might be our last 'date' or whatever you might want to call it and that messes with my head big time."

He kissed her forehead, lingering there for a moment longer than usual, knowing that she needed the comfort, "Hey," He coaxed before he pulled back, smiling, "No talk about tomorrow, remember?"

She nodded, knowing very well what they had promised each other earlier. It wasn't that she didn't want to be true to their agreement, it was quite the opposite actually. There was nothing that sounded more intriguing to her than forgetting about all the drama that had happened earlier that day and simply enjoy the moments she had with Matty, whether they were going to be the last ones or the beginning of many more to come. Fact was that it simply wasn't as easy as it sounded. She couldn't look at him with his curly hair and his skinny ripped jeans without feeling the need to try and memorize every little detail about him in case he wasn't going to be around the next day.